Which might look like “smart”, but you can train a chimp to a certain level, too:) Again, n.b. that there are some smart folks doing bad stuff. I just find them to be in an extreme minority, just my experience, and your mileage may vary.

The people we are struggling to define here aren’t eating out of a warehouse full of “safe” foods in some undisclosed location either - nor are their families. When they mess with the food chain to this extent in a play for more trade deals and profit, they will have the same difficulty finding safe food that we do. GM seeds, plants, foods will do the same damage to them as to us, and that genie is out of the bottle. Can’t turn it back, and the effects are across the board.

I just can’t find the “smart” in that at all.

Very interesting read, but I see a few things differently :)

First of all, I don’t believe that those bozos are oh, so intelligent. On average, they are average.

What distinguishes them is their ruthlessness, and the ease with which they sail over ethical stumbling blocks, and the exclusivity of their self-centrism.

‘Intelligent’ is different from ‘clever’, or ‘street smart’.

My point is, they might be powerful and influencial and whattheheckelse, *but nobody is as smart as many*.

Remember, about 20 years ago, when a people shook off their oppressors and chased totalitarianism out of their country by meeting, every Monday evening, in all towns and cities, doing nothing but marching through the streets and chanting: We are the people!

To the best of my knowledge, that was the first time in the history of mankind that a despotical government (and trust me, they were!) got wiped out of office without blood shed or war, without weapons or ‘external help’.

Just people, many, many ‘stupid’ little oppressed people, going out there, stubbornly, without much hope of ever changing anything.

Ubboy, did they ever!

So, yes, writing emails, sending letters, talking to other people and ‘informing our representatives that we are not, repeat, not amused’ will facilitate a change. Refusing to buy certain goods is an enormously powerful means of changing things, especially in this society.

‘The earth trembles under the steps of millions in locksteps who all whisper: one alone can’t change a thing’.*

*Shoot, if I only knew where I have that from, but it is quite old…..

Watch this space: I guarantee you that within a couple of months or a year or so a company called Menue Foods Income yaddayadda will go belly up.

It does take a certain kind of smart. Not just personality traits, but an almost instinctive knowing how to shut down resistance, belittle facts, and influence opinions. Carefully and in the right way, or you don’t get far.

I don’t think they’re not smart, they just know more about how to get where they are then they do about what they are doing.

It doesn’t hurt to be able to place blame effectively elsewhere, too. A certain amount of denial privides the anti-skid to hold onto positions, too.

So, TC, I still think one generallyu needs to be smart, at least in some ways, to have power. But they don’t have to be responsible, or even respectable… at all…

What fun - I will be browsing at amazon tomorrow. Obviously had no idea of the extent of KA attachments!

Elaine, I bought a stand alone electric flour mill a couple of years back. SO glad I did!!! Flour never smelled so good!!

it just arrived today!!! :)i didn’t know there was one, but stumbled on it on Amazon. HAD to buy it! :D I also bought some *special* un-refined sugar with ground vanilla bean for it. Imagine me checking out of life and checking into the ice cream bowl ;)

http://www.itchmo.com/read/men…..e_20070522

Comment by Lynn — May 22, 2007 @ 9:52 pm

and that was generally the highlight of the day. we need to buy them a sense of humor along with a brain . . .

sorry, just so freakin’ disgusted right now.

*goes to put new ice cream maker bowl in the freezer*